Springfield daily republic. [volume] (Springfield, O. [Ohio]) 1887-1888, 1887-03-12
THE Pulpit and PENDING PROBLEM>
-CHCRCH-GOING and GOOD CITI-

THE PULPIT AND PENDING PROBLEM>
-CHURCH-GOING AND GOOD tfTI-
ZENSHIP.
Man is worShipful animal-to some eN-
tent. He is certainly the only animal that
worships. Bad as he is by nature. the hu-
man animal seems to have some natural
| tendencies 10 look upward. The aboriginal
American worshipped the Great Father,
devoutly, in a measure. and he was very
decent. well-meaning and well-acting AMI
NAL. until he was spoiled by our aggressive.
o5streperous. bulldozing civilization, which
! brought to him gunpowder and whisky IN
the same vehicle that brought the Bible:
and which, while preaching the Gospel to
him cheated him OUT Of his domains and
drove him from his lands. IL should be
borne in mind, however that 1t was not the
men who brought the Bible and the Gospel
of Peace to the indian, who Supplied him
with the powder or the whisky. or who
used a mess of pottage, so To speak, to
swindle him out Of his birth-right. Cirili-
zstion is represented. often, by two oppos-
| ing forces, marching aut in the same terri
tory.
The sayages. with the HindoO, the
! Chinaman and the African. being worship
pers, il would seem that men who are
civilized and who have an opportu-
nifty to become enlightened and pr"sres-
sive, should be worshipperS, also, ON
an improved plan, and that. with 81 many
opportunities and privileges aS the Ameri-
can citizen enjoys, he should attend church,
with his wife. children. sisters. annts,
cousins and mother-in-law. The primary
and supreme reason why he should do 50, Is
that if is the duty of all people 20 NEE. to-
gether in the house of God, TO publicly
worship the Supreme Being. This is the
highest motive that can influence human
being. The desire Ia hear fine, scholarly
sermon is the fruit of an inferior motive
possibly not an unworthy one.
But. there are good secondary and inferior
reasons why people who are not pl"us
should attend church-and other than re-
lirious reasons the religious reasons. by the
way, always being better and more import
ant than all other reasons. In the hrst
place, the modern pulpit is abreast with the
press in the treatment of questions and
problems of public interest. The great
themes which occupy the public mind-and
which are often of supreme mterest-are
discussed from the pulpit as well as from
the platform, and intelligently, and from
the standpoint of public interest. The pull
pit is the friend of the people. All must
admit that. And the pulpit Is, III great
measure. free, untrammeled, aud in posi-
ton 10 present the moral aspects of all
issues. Labor problems have had
their most practical and helpful
treatment from the pulpit The doctrines
of the Carpenters Son. himself laboring
man. as expounded by Himself and
Peter and Paul. actual toilers. are
especially adapted To the solution
of pending industrial problems-and
the principle of the Golden Rule is the
basal principle involved. When labor and
capital will stand upon common ground.
each resolved to treat the other fairly and
honestly, and when the two interests agree
| in an effort to promote common and public
interests, then We shall have no more labor
TROUBLESOME oppressive bulldozing or rob
bing of employees, no unfair advantages
taken of empioyers-nothing but mutual
efforts to promote the common and the pub
| lie welfare.
Then there are other pending problems
some Of them ablaze with significance and
glowing with supreme importance-prob-
lens in the solution of which every citizen,
and every human being as WELL is person
ally Interested. which are seldom discussed
outside of the pulpit. These effect personal
duty and privilege: they relate TO the
life and conduct Of the individual.
not only as it affects his
own well-being or hope for the
future but As ii has bearing on the gen
eral welfare, on the peace. good order and
prosperity of the community. What
ever We may think of the religious
doctrines of the preacher of the Gospel. We
must admit that pulpit work and church
work have a wholesome influence un society
on the masses of the people. The pulpit
aud the church greatly restrict the deadly
influences of the open whisky saloon. the
gambling den and the house of prostitution.
They constitute society'S only fortress
against these terrible social evils, which
are destroying 50 many men-young and old
and wrecking 80 many innocent and de-
fenselesS families.
Then. it must be conceded TO be fact
that the habtual church-goer is a good citi-
zen. The mere drOppings of the sanctuary
have a cleansing tendency: they make men
decent and orderly. and have tendency to
suppant the power of the breathing places
of hell over them. What then, are the in-
fiunces of the church and Sunday school
upon the Young" As matter
of fact. and not of sentiment.
or religious belief? Ii is very seldom that
the Sabbath School scholar finds his way tn
the court of the mayor or the magistrate.
IL il only when boys have become in their
own opinion too old or too smart 10 receive
moral or religious instruction and begin 10
loaf about street corners on nights and
Sundays. that they get into the patrol
wagon and are hustled off TO the station
house. Children and young people are
more impressible than their elders they
present to their moral teacher virgin soil:
they give him the first chance To impress
them and to take possession of them in the
name of truth. virtue and religion. Then. |
by all means, take the children TO church
ttnnhance al church urnmntes intelli- |